The Virtual Pew Daily: Anabaptist Christmas

Showing posts with label Anabaptist Christmas. Show all posts

Thursday, November 6, 2014

A Christmas Story, Chapter 5, James Briscoe

The following is Chapter 5 of A Christmas Story by Mike Furches. You can see the preceding prologue and Chapters in the archives or links section of this page. This story is copyrighted by Mike Furches and intent to publish in book form in 2015. This is the variation prior to final edit prior to publication.

CHAPTER 5

JAMES BRISCOE

By Mike Furches

2 Years Earlier

James loved fried chicken, while KFC was his favorite it was rare that he got to eat it because of its cost. When the family wanted chicken or he had enough money to buy something for his brothers and sister, it was usually Church's Chicken. It was pretty good and a lot cheaper than KFC. Despite the rarity of eating KFC, here he was, standing in line on a Wednesday night to order 4 KFC Chicken Fried Steak specials and to get an 8 piece bucket. With the coupon he had he could get everything for less than a $20 bill.

This was a typical night, his mother Jeanette had not been home for a week. She had issues with drugs, crack and meth especially and for all practical purposes, she was seldom at home and when she was at home there were more problems than not. James knew he was responsible for raising his brothers and sister. He never knew who his father was and it was likely that each of his siblings had a different father. His mother Jeanette at one time had been a very attractive woman. She was tall with milk chocolate colored skin. She was in good shape, not from exercise unless you counted walking the streets exercise but it was from her natural genetics. That made it easier for her to turn tricks as a prostitute so she could buy her drugs. Since James had turned 12, (he was 14 now) her appearance had gone down hill. Her hair was thinning and her teeth had deteriorated. As a result, she didn't smile as much and her income from prostitution had gone down drastically which meant she had to do even more dehumanizing things.

James had two younger brothers, Charlie, was 10 and of average build for his age. Buddy had just turned 9 and was a little heavy for his age, he wasn't fat per say, but he clearly wasn't an athlete by definition or appearance. While the other boys took joy in playing outside, Buddy was content to play video games. Then there was James sister Barb, an unexpected come along who had recently turned 5. James was pretty certain that Barb's birth father was a white man because of the her abnormally light skin. She looked more like a Mexican or Italian than she did black and outside of the summer months, she looked more Caucasian. This didn't matter to the boys, despite some of the strange looks they got at times. James had been questioned as to why the boys were hanging around this white girl when going to a restaurant or play ground with his siblings. His friends in Turley and his distant family later realized and understood that despite the actions of his mother, James had done a good job with his brothers and sister.

There were times in the past when his grandparents were there to help raise the children. They died in a car accident shortly after Barb was born but they had already instilled the values on the importance of family to James.

James' grandparents took James and the other children to church when they were younger and prior to their death. It was clear to James that church was important to his grandparents but he had experienced and felt a sense of hypocrisy regarding the church after the were killed on their way back from visiting family in Dallas. James couldn't forget the looks and stares of the church members when they brought food and so called well wishes to the house after the funeral. They would stare at his mother, knowing what she did and James still recalled the whispers. He had heard of how the church was to love, he even saw that example in his grandparents but it didn't take long before he realized after his grandparents death, that the church and the people in the it would conveniently disappear from the life of the Briscoe's when they needed them the most. It was when James needed the help from the church the most that he was judged by many of those in the church or, as he later said, he was judged for the actions of his mother. It was so easy to look down on someone while at the same time ignoring the needs of the innocents, especially, the children.

Many of those around James thought his mother was taking care of the children but shortly after the death of his grandparent his mother became more absent from the home, leaving James at a very young age to care for his siblings. James had tried to make friends in the community with those who were decent kids, staying out of trouble but most of them due to the needs of he and his brothers and sister stayed away. It was the friends who were used to taking advantage of others due to their own needs that James started hanging around. They would come to the house which was small and dingy to camp out and escape their own home situations. At least James had access to his moms food stamps and kept food in the house. The family also had state assistance due to the 4 children all of which were minors. James had learned to balance what they had, making sure that not only would there be a couch for his friends to sleep on, there would be something in the fridge to eat. In all of this though, James still took the time to look after his brothers and sister.

It was almost a year later when James started to be influenced to some extent by his friends. He had resorted to shoplifting a few times to make up for things the family needed. As his friends spent more time at his house, eating the food, drinking the milk, using the laundry services, and so forth, there was less for his brothers and sister. James supplemented the needs of his family and his friends had shown him how easy that was to do. After awhile, James confidence grew to the point that he had moved from shoplifting to doing simple breaking and entering robberies to get items that he could sell at local pawn shops or on craigslist to get extra money. He took on this aspect of theft especially during birthdays and Christmas. He seldom used the money from selling the items for anything he wanted outside of an occasional CD but he didn't want Charlie, Buddy or Barb to go without due to the actions of their mother. The church and family that were so quick to judge had ways they could help, if nothing else by putting them in touch with the local Salvation Army and other groups, but James was convinced that those individuals and church had better things to do for them. He would think they didn't have time for families like his.

James had been recruited by some of the gangs in the area but he was smart enough to stay away from them. He had good friends who were a part of the gangs but as much as they offered a since of family to him, he knew he had flesh and blood family to care for, even if they were his half brothers and sister. While James saw a since of family among his friends in the gangs, he also saw an opportunity for prison and in some cases, death.

James had an issue with drugs, he had seen first hand what they had done to his mother Jeanette. He had tried to smoke but didn't like it and never got into drinking alcohol. He stayed as far away from those aspects of life as he could. He didn't want to sell drugs and he certainly didn't want to use them. For all practical purposes, James was a good kid in a bad environment. He was doing the best he could considering the circumstances he lived in. Of course he also knew those looking in made lots of assumptions, assumptions largely not true based not just on his condition, but his race.

James had seen racism all around him. There were churches that were primarily black or primarily white. North of the Greenwood District in Tulsa was still segregated. Most of the blacks lived up through Greenwood and Turley and most of the whites to the South, into Broken Arrow. There were small communities that were predominantly Caucasian that had been established around the ranching cowboy days in the area, communities like Owasso and Collinsville but as close as they were in proximity, they were a world apart in an understanding of each others culture.

James had seen the church culture around Northeast Oklahoma and Tulsa in particular. Tulsa was after all known as the "Charismania Capital of the World" with Oral Roberts University, Rhema Bible Institute and the teachings of churches like Higher Dimensions and The Christian Victory Center. These churches seemed to be integrated but were filled with people believing in the concepts of being healthy and wealthy. James knew some folks who went to these churches and while they had great programs, they were always soliciting money and seldom if ever actually doing ministry in the areas they reached out to, especially the areas predominantly black. It was convenient and easy to send busses to pick people up but they had never taken the time to get to know the needs of the communities. They didn't know or understand why people became upset when their streets always seemed to be the last to be fixed or when there was a snow or ice storm, why, once again, their community was the last to be served.

There were some predominantly black churches that had done some good things to help their communities, they were rare and James had never been invited to them or knew anyone at those churches, he was too busy caring for his brothers and sister and trying to make it on his own. As a result of his extra curricular activities in life, James was able to go to school at Booker T. Washington but he wasn't doing well as he could have. He didn't time to go to the study groups and other activities at school which would have helped him. While there was help available to meet his needs, he was justifiably afraid. He knew that if he and his family were found out then Family Services would break up the family and they would be separated. James figured it was best to just endure and get by. While he had the potential to do better than just get by, he had little knowledge and no one to help him get to that place or to keep his family together if he did get the help.

As life for James moved on he became more callused at the situations surrounding his on life. The only thing he was sold out to was his brothers and sister. He would do all he could to provide for them and give them as good a life as humanly possible. For others around him whether it be various adult influences that included family, the church and later on, his friends whom he had seen take advantage of him, James became more callused and was going through life giving the appearance to most, that he just didn't care, of course, that was during the public times when others saw him, privately, it was clear, James cared for his family and wanted more for them. He was like many others in his community though, a child raising children. There was a time when parents took care of their children, that moved to a time when grandparents would take care of them. The time was coming, and for many, already here when children were the ones caring for other children, unfortunately for many, losing the opportunity to experience childhood for themselves. James fit into the later category.

This was all two years earlier, while missing out on much of his childhood, he had done the best he could at being a provider, mother, and father for his brothers and sister. On this day, James lay on his cot at the Juvenile Detention Center thinking about Charlie, Buddy and Barb. He wondered, what would happen as he awaited the trial for the crimes he had just been arrested for.

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Thursday, October 16, 2014

A Christmas Story, Chapter 2, Christmas Eve

The following is Chapter 2 of A Christmas Story by Mike Furches. You can see the preceding prologue and Chapter 1 in the archives or links section of this page. This story is copyrighted by Mike Furches and intent to publish in book form in 2015. This is the variation prior to final edit prior to publication.

From A Christmas Story

By Mike Furches

CHAPTER 2

Christmas Eve

The Hamm’s home was a nice, two-story split level located in one of the new subdivisions in Owasso. Owasso was a fast growing bedroom community North of Tulsa, and predominately Caucasian. The income for most homes was in the middle to upper class status. Few minorities lived in Owasso although there had been a influx of Hispanic workers. There was a large transfer of Hispanics from Texas for chicken processing plant. There were few Blacks and Asians. There was a larger number of Native Americans due to the large population of Original Americans in the area as a hold over from Oklahoma Territory being set up for reservations. The Original American population was larger than other population groups with the exception of Caucasians but in comparison with other communities across Oklahoma, Owasso had fewer Native Americans per capita than most communities across the state. Even with this the case Owasso took pride in its Original American heritage. Even the name Owasso meant End of the Trail and it respected everyone making up its community.

Charlie and Tayras’ home sat off of 76^th Street North. Driving to work Charlie accessed Highway 169 just by pulling out of his driveway, turning west, going approximately 2 miles and getting on Highway 169 South towards Tulsa. Highway 169 a 4 lane expressway into Tulsa allowed him to be at work in 20 minuets. The actual mileage between the two cities limits was only three miles but with the early morning traffic it took longer to get to work.

Friends and family visiting the Hamm’s from out of state were surprised at the number of lakes in Oklahoma. Oklahoma is among the top states with the number of miles of coast line, including all bodies of water. The area surrounding Tulsa is hilly with plush green surroundings. During the seasons, especially the fall, there are flowering plants throughout the region. This all created a much more beautiful impression of Oklahoma than most realized.

In the area around Owasso there was a change in scenery with fewer hills especially to its north going towards the Kansas state line. All across Tulsa and most of the North East region of the state there was a number of forests with beautiful streams and hills. There were other areas where it was flat, and not much to see other than the tall grass prairies. When going North towards Kansas, Owasso was the first area where this became obvious.

The Hamm’s moved to Owasso due to its close proximity to Tulsa and American Airlines where Charlie worked and it had a good reputation for their schools. While many schools had good reputations in the area, Owasso students tested exceptionally well on state and national tests and it was close to work. A large percentage of students went to college where they also excelled. This was important to Charlie and Tayra due to their own interests for their children to do well and prepare for the future. After living in Owasso for awhile they realized that not everything was as rosy as they had first thought. Owasso like any community had their share of problems but it was a community they where still pleased to live in and be a part of. They also knew that while every community and every school has some to be desired, it was still superior to others public schools in the area.

******

Charlie enjoyed Christmas more than any of the holidays and his house showed it. While the region surrounding Tulsa was noted for their decorations during the Holidays Charlie and Tayra had a house which exhibited the holiday spirit. The two-story-split-level home had lights surrounding the frame of the house all of the way around the eves. They had candles in each window and a large beautiful lighted green wreath on the front door adorned with red ribbons. In the front of the yard was a unique full sized, life like nativity. It had all of the traditional things, the shepherds, three kings, Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus and animals but it also had a figurine of Santa Claus kneeling at the manger of the baby Jesus. There was a flood light on the nativity changing colors and a hidden speaker playing the songs, Away in A Manger, and It Came Upon A Midnight Clear. The house was not decorated in a gaudy way as many houses often were during the holidays, it was neat and attractive. It was a house people drove by when out driving and looking at lights and many were impressed with it because of its simplicity and appreciation that it wasn't as much like the Griswold house with Steve Martin from the movie A Christmas Story. Instead there was a lot to see and it was tastefully done.

Charlie sat on the living room couch with his arm around Tayra looking at the Christmas tree and listening to a mix of Christmas music he had put together on his Mp3 player. It included everything from Classic Christmas Carols like Joy to the World and songs by Andy Williams and other Classical artists to some newer contemporary Christmas songs like Tennessee Christmas by Amy Grant, and others by Steven Curtis Chapman, Point of Grace and others. He even had a few Chipmunk Christmas songs for the kids but truth was, Charlie liked those songs as much as the kids. Charlie and Tayra put the kids to bed almost two hours ago and were confident they were asleep. The two of them were starting to get tired themselves.

The Hamm’s were not going to have a huge Christmas this year but they were going to have a very nice Christmas. Charlie always saw to it that his family got most of what they wanted for Christmas, not because he believed in the commercialism of Christmas but he saw it as an opportunity to show his family how much he loved them. Charlie and Tayra also made it a point over the last 15 years to make sure they had their children go through their possessions and clear them out prior to Christmas most of the time delivering the goods to ministries and other places they knew there would be children who would appreciate any gift they got. They did this annually with the gifts being used and others practically new but all of them almost like new. Charlie never liked giving away things that were of no value. He had volunteered on a regular basis at a church named Mosaic that did a lot of work for the homeless. He had unfortunately seen soiled toys, stuffed animals, blankets and the like donated to that ministry, even at time seeing people donate spoiled food. Pastor Mike at Mosaic always expressed his gratitude for the gifts but had decided some time ago that he just didn't have the manpower to sort through donations of the sort. Through this Charlie learned to think beforehand about what type of impression it would give to someone who had always been given used broken items or items of no value like the things he had seen donated to Mosaic.

In the background of the living room there were the soft carols of Mannheim Steamroller and Kenny G now playing. The music was all instrumental but easy and pleasing to the ears. It was nice because Charlie had just taken off the music of The Tractors, a popular country swing band out of Tulsa that he enjoyed. While their music and c.d. was enjoyable it was definitely upbeat and at times humorous. Charlie moved closer to Tayra putting his arm around her and snuggling up to her. "Church sure was good tonight wasn’t it?"

"Yea everything except the rain storm and getting there a little late." Tayra responded as she reached down and placed Charlie’s hand in hers. She gently rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb as they sat there snuggle up with the soft sounds of Christmas playing through their sound system.

Charlie chuckled, "Well at least I don’t have to wash my hair tonight before foing to bed."

"I guess not." Tayra responded with a smile as she snuggled even closer, putting her head on his chest.

"Charlie?" Tayra asked.

"Yea, Honey."

"Do you really think the kids will have a good Christmas this year, I mean Brenda and Sammy didn’t really get a lot of stuff?"

"No but they got pretty much what they wanted and what they wanted cost a pretty penny. We got that stereo and ring for Brenda and Sammy has a new motorcycle parked out front that he doesn't know about yet. That’s besides the other little things they have under the tree like clothes, c.d.’s and things from others in the family." Charlie responded.

"Yea I guess that’s right." Tayra answered. "I can’t wait to see Sam’s eyes, especially after the presents for Kari and Brenda have been opened. He'll get down to his last present, the little box you have hid under the tree stand that tells him to go look outside. I guess that up until then he'll be thinking he doesn't have much and didn’t get much this year. Then he"ll see his new motorcycle." Tayra’s eyes lit up because she remembered the times Charlie fooled the family into thinking they were not getting much and surprised them with either wrapping boxes in boxes to disguise the gift or to at times kidding them and telling them exactly what they had in a present all of the time knowing they didn’t believe him. This was a pleasant memory for Tayra because Charlie didn't give her an engagement ring when they got married because he just didn't have the money. It wasn't until they had been married for three years before she got her ring. It was the Christmas he wrapped the ring in a box with a brick in it, telling her all of the time it was her ring but knowing she didn't believe him.

The two sat there talking and reflecting on past Christmases when the clock chimed that it was now 1 AM.

"I guess it's bedtime. We have everything out and the kids know better than to come in here until we are up. I know they will be up by at least they will be up 6 AM trying to get us up." Charlie said.

Tayra replied, "I really think they will sleep in tomorrow until at least 8:00. Sammy and Brenda are old enough that they know what they need to do and Kari is so young that she doesn't realize what is going on."

"Yea, I guess we have a couple of years before we start getting woke up at 3 and 4 o’clock in the morning. Of course Sammy and Brenda could fool us, we will have to wait and see, and pray that they sleep in." Charlie said laughing. Then realized the clock had chimed at 1 AM he bent down to her as she lay her head on his chest and kissed Tayra, "Merry Christmas honey."

"Merry Christmas." She responded after the kiss. "Come and lets go on to bed and get some rest." They got up from the couch and started walking down the hallway towards their bedroom. They turned off the lights on the tree and around the house, including the outside. They left the living room area shutting the sliding privacy doors into the living room which keep the room from being visible to the kids once waking up. They children may wake and go to the kitchen to get something to eat before Charlie and Tayra but Charlie and Tayra knew they would not go into the living room until everyone was up. Charlie and Tayra had also given strict instructions that Sammy and Brenda were to either be in their room doing whatever, or in the kitchen eating breakfast but they were not to go into the living room or outside. This would keep Sammy from seeing his motorcycle parked in the driveway which was only visible from Charlie and Tayra’s bedroom and the living room. As Charley and Tayra walked upstairs they peeked into each of the children’s bedrooms and sure enough they were sound asleep. It wasn’t long until they were both in their room sound asleep.

The lights were turned off both inside and out, and the person in the car parked a half a block down noticed, the Hamm's were obviously going to bed.

******

The Hamm's sleep restfully except for a brief moment when Charlie thought he heard a noise downstairs and later a vehicle leaving near their house. He started to get up but realized that Tayra had not moved. He thought that what he heard was from a dream or his imagination. After all the furnace often kicked in it made noises and Charlie thought it could have been the sound he thought he heard. After thinking about this a few moments he went back to sleep without any difficulty.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

A Christmas Story, Part 1 Prologue

The following is a regular update which will be taking place on a weekly basis. It consists of the new book I am writing called A Christmas Story. I am going to be attempting to post a chapter a week up until the final posting, hopefully Christmas week. There are also hopes and plans to have the book published after the Christmas Season in book form. The book and story are fully copyrighted and while that is the case, as long as appropriate credit is given, I welcome you sharing the page. I also welcome donations if possible to help cover costs, expenses and time for the writings. Every small bit helps and if you click on any of the pages, or visit www.mosaicwichita.com you can click on the donation links. It should be noted that 100% of revenues that come in go to support the ministry and work of The Virtual Pew and Mosaic. I take no profits from this work at this time outside of reimbursements. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the story.

A Christmas Story

Prologue

By: Mike Furches

A Christmas Story is inspired by a story heard on the James Dobson radio show, Focus on the Family back in the early 1990’s. This fictional work is written with many Christian concepts in mind that were once taught in many if not most Anabaptist Churches and still taught in some.

As one who didn't grow up in a Christian home I have come to appreciate and love Mennonites and consider myself a Mennonite in the application of my own theology in my own life. I hope the truth, love and compassion once so prevalent in this belief system is demonstrated here. Hopefully this work will pay tribute to the thousands of Mennonites who died for their faith during the Reformation for practicing simple concepts like adult baptism and living a lifestyle of ultimate love for others no matter what the consequence.

While the Mennonite church has historically loved all people and reached out to them with the love of Christ, many churches, especially in North America, could do a better job at reaching out to inner city youth, the unchurched, minorities and especially those seen as being different than themselves. I have had disagreements with pastors in a church I was attending about who our focus of outreach should be towards. I believe that particular church made a mistake when they targeted a certain age group, from a certain social economic environment, specifically in certain neighborhoods. The neighborhood the church was reaching out too was middle to upper class families and most were home owners. It isn’t that the Church shouldn’t have directed efforts towards this group but the lack of effort to try and understand the culture and lifestyles of those not from higher income communities, absent from an acceptance of a Christian World-View and in some cases, people living across the street who lived in lower income homes and trailers was foreign for me. This was especially true when considering that many lower income neighborhoods was also within the geographical area the church was reaching out to, yet those areas and communities were largely ignored. For one who had studied the incarnational concepts of faith, that is Jesus came and associated with us, was even known of as Jesus of Nazareth. He chose to associate with all people, but especially those who had little, the poor, not just in spirit, but financially.

As is often the case, churches seem to build their attendance around the communities where there is money. Unfortunately, this is one of the areas many Mennonite congregations and Anabaptist groups have moved to in recent years, reaching the wealthy, staying away from the poor, and not understanding the culture around them. While there is urban outreach at times it seems the urban outreach that exists, exists in affluent communities as opposed to the inner cities and impoverished neighborhoods. I have more than a few personal stories about conversations I have had at times on this subject with various church leaders from various denominational groups, both including and excluding, Mennonites.

Churches often reach out to people they expect to be like them, the concept of reaching out to those different is lost, it is one reason it is so easy to do mission work in another country than in your own neighborhood. There are times there is little room or time for grace, understanding and what many people of faith call that concept of incarnation. Many believe the church should make the effort to try and better understand those they are reaching out to and at the very least not show any partiality to income or financial status. Jesus spent a great deal of time teaching and speaking to others about the poor and needy, the orphan and the widow.

Jesus commanded his followers to be fishers of men, not certain men but all men. One obvious conclusion if understanding this concept of being a fisher of men is that one should use the right type of bait when fishing for certain types of men. There has to be an understanding that different types of men may require different types of bait. Most successful fishermen learn to fish for more than one kind of fish, thus learning the traits for each type of fish they are trying to catch. As followers of Jesus and as the Church, we should learn to be fishers of various types of men and women, not just the wealthy, and those like us, but all fish that dwell in our own little part of the ocean. For those who have been diving in waters, whether the ocean or a lake, sea or river, you know, more than one fish occupies any given territory. A fisherman must know the territory, and how to catch the fish, whether a preverbal or allegorical fish, or a real fish.

I have often asked myself why churches seem to only reach out to certain groups while at the same time never making serious efforts, if any, to reach out to the types of people Jesus seemed to so blatantly love and care for? I can’t help but to imagine if Jesus were walking around to day He would reach out to those with drug issues, marriage problems, the homeless, those oppressed by war or societal issues and poverty or money issues among others. Those are the ones often called, The Lost, The Last, and The Least. I have to wonder though, is it those we call this who are the Lost The Last and The Least, or has the Church fallen into those categories? I am not so sure about the terms we used, but I like to call them the hurting, the misunderstood, and those needing Jesus for not just spiritual salvation, but salvation from their circumstance.

I have come to believe the church often takes the actions it does so it can feel comfortable. However, the Church must ask the questions: If we don’t reach out to unpopular groups of people who are different than what we are accustomed to, who will? Far too often the Church has become like the Scribes and Pharisees of Jesus time. She is critical of those who are not religious, practice a different faith, or have no faith at all, we even at times seem to put a political affiliation requirement on those we are willing to love and reach out to. Many in the church doesn’t want to surround herself with people who are perceived as, "undesirable" because of their, "sinful lifestyles". It is sad but true, our actions are not only driven by our thoughts, but what we think others will think of us for practicing our faith the way Jesus and the writers of the Bible instruct us to.

It is here we need to realize, that yes, while the Church is a building or a location; it isn’t really a church without the people who make up the Church. It is in reality the people who make the Church what she is or is not. Our thoughts and our perceptions either have us doing the right thing, or ignoring the right thing and doing what is for many, comfortable. While this may be the easy road many choose, while there may even be a level of effectiveness to it, it isn't what calls us to.

Think about what the Scribes and Pharisees said? They accused Jesus of being with drunkards, prostitutes, tax collectors, the poor, the sick, outcast and more. These were the very people Jesus and the early Church reached out to. They were not the only people, there were others who fell into the category of middle to upper class, yet, Jesus made specific efforts, to reach out to the ‘sinners’. He went to where they were and related in a way were he showed them he respected and loved them as a people. This concept of relating, of becoming ‘one of them,’ is incarnation.

Often, as people go to church they think everything about their lives and the lives of others who come to the church has to change. For example, only certain types of music may be accepted, others are not, there has to be a set pattern to the rhythms and beats and it is imperative that everyone follow those patterns. Sometimes there are certain dress requirements. While we don’t always come right out and say these things or we may even deny these things in our words, our actions indicate this is church policy. As many churches start targeting groups for outreach they leave out certain populations, it is evident as we look around us that this is the case. I ask the questions, “Who is reaching out to various racial groups? Are our Churches integrated with all ethnic groups? Do we show love to the poor, not just by putting money in the missionary funds, but by spending time with them, face to face, heart to heart, eye to eye? Do we have homeless programs that not only meet the immediate need, but work to establish more for them, more like homes, families careers, etc... Are we giving financially to help those in need as much as we are asking to meet our financial needs such as our building funds? Do we know why someone is a gang banger? When is the last time we hugged a prostitute? What about criminals, do they know what it is like to have a visit from a person of faith? Does the church welcome skaters? Goths? Do we know what these people believe? Do those in alternative lifestyles know us? What about those involved in new age concepts? Do we involve ourselves with the country music crowd? How about Rock n Rollers? We can ask ourselves the question, when the bible says whoever, do we believe it? Does our whosoever’s include people who are Bi, Lesbian, Gay, Transgendered, or even Straight, Religious, Muslim, or Hispanic? What conditions and restrictions do we place on our efforts to reach out to and share Jesus love with others?

Hopefully you get my point. Unfortunately, it is clear; many in the Church do not want to reach out to the above mentioned groups and are not willing to do what is needed in order to be effective in reaching them. Churches, not open to the concepts needed to reach these "different", groups for Christ that should be on their knees asking for Gods forgiveness for their lack of concern and unwillingness to share the "Good News" and in doing the work Jesus and the Scripture commands.

Jesus came and incarnated. He gave His life so "none would perish" and "all can come into the presence of the Lord," "worshipping Him forever and ever." One of the situations at the church I attended was I had a disagreement with one of the pastors around the area of music. We were looking at developing an alternative contemporary worship service that would be a form of outreach to those in the community not going to church using a style many could relate to. Some in the church felt certain types of music was not acceptable and that people in their 30’s and 40’s would not enjoy a more contemporary and upbeat style. I found this attitude humorous. I was in that age group at the time and decided to do some research to find out what was the most popular radio stations in our area for listeners in that age group. The most popular radio stations were stations with classic rock and adult rock formats. This made sense to me because while growing up I listened to groups like Aerosmith, AC/DC, ELO, Van Halen and others with styles popular like this. When I stopped and thought about it, so did most of my friends. Most in this age group and older, they still find this format enjoyable. This does not mean everything I listen to is hard rock but rock and pop are styles many listen to. For different cultures, and within certain segments of various cultures, different styles and formats other than these arise. At one church I was a pastor at the research for our community showed that the Wal-Mart up near us was one of the largest sellers of Hispanic Music in the Country. This certainly played into our decisions when deciding what style of music to incorporate for worship. I have learned that those in the 18-24 age groups within the African American Community listen to different styles of music than most Caucasian listeners between the ages of 55 and 62. While there are always exceptions, they are just that, exceptions.

Another humorous component of this issue is I have looked at and researched Church growth and revival. At churches who have experienced major growth. Most of the new worship music across the world experiencing growth spurts are churches that have updated their music and mode of worship. An obvious example of this is the Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola Florida. As of the writing of this book they have experienced a long running growth spurt. While there is appropriate debate as to if this is a growth revival, there is no denying the impact the church has had. Whether you agree with their doctrine or not they have had people standing outside in lines waiting to get into the church for sometimes days in advance. One can not question the impact this church has had on America and the world. People are getting saved in record numbers and changing their lifestyles from drugs, prostitution, gangs and other sinful lifestyles. Many have given their lives to Christ and made Him their Lord and living lives of holiness and love for others. One of the components bringing people into this church is the style of music which allows and encourages authentic worship. Songs like ‘Saved’ by Bob Dylan and other contemporary artist fill the worship experience as well as a blend of occasional old traditional hymns. Again, under a pure definition of revival it is speculative as to whether or not Pensacola falls into the 'Revival" definition. There is also no doubt though, that for legitimately defined revivals like the Wesley Revival, The Jesus People Movement, The Asbury Revival and others, that music has had an impact. Even contemporary revivals featuring such evangelists as Billy Graham and others has understood the importance of contemporary music.

Christianity has for over two thousand years now used the music of the culture to reach the people of their generation. From “A Mighty Fortress is Our God,” to songs like “On Jordan’s Stormy Banks” culture has had a tremendous impact on the style of music used in church gatherings. One should for example consider the standard, “Amazing Grace.” It has gone through changes and was written without music. It was years after John Newton pinned the lyrics when the tune was given to the song and it is likely that Newton, the songs lyricist never heard the version we sing.

Do churches need to find ways to reach out to fringe groups which may not be popular in some church formats? I think so. That is not to say the Church has to accept a sinful lifestyle. For example, I believe that areas not based on Biblical truth need to be seriously questioned. The Mennonite people which are featured in this story are people of doctrine and they as well as other members of the Christian faith should hold firm to their doctrines. In Christianity we certainly have absolutes and it is important to practice our beliefs and if those beliefs are Biblically solid there is nothing wrong with holding firm to those beliefs. We should not be ashamed of the Gospel nor the teachings of Christ and the absolutes He stood for, preached, taught and lived. While not all churches may be able to adapt to these changes, they must at least be willing to consider planting and starting churches which make it possible for people within alternative circles to worship in a way that brings joy and purpose to their lives. We like Jesus must take part in and encourage, incarnation. Of course in all of this, it is also important to do serious study, not just on the words and text of scripture, but the cultural issues being addressed in scripture. In today's world it is also quite easy to go back to the original languages and determine the likely meaning of the writings we are basing our beliefs on. It may not take long that when doing this, we may discover that not all is has it has been taught over the years.

Today’s Church needs to learn to decipher the difference between Biblical absolutes and cultural differences; we cannot let a cultural difference prevent us from finding ways to reach those who are different. It is moronic for many in the church to make the comparison that ‘Rock N Roll’ or ‘Hip Hop’ is the music of the devil. There are many within the Christian faith that still use this type of argument. They need to look at the historical fact of where many of our hymns come from.

The above is one example of a cultural difference when making worship decisions. When accepting people into church fellowships other cultural areas might include length of hair, certain types of dress, piercings, tattoos and other things. For example, contemporary skaters have a dress style that many do not like but certain aspects of the style of dress have nothing wrong with it other than the fact that many of us who are older didn’t or don’t dress that way. Regarding hair, in today’s culture it may be more undesirable to have extremely short hair than long hair depending on where you live due to the racially motivated skinhead movement. Many in the Church may not realize it but many in today’s contemporary culture make the comparison of men and or women with close cut or shaved heads as being racially bigoted. Is this to say that short hair in and of itself is wrong? Certainly not, it is to say there are cultural issues which make these questions we have to ask more difficult than many realize. Some will remember the days when some said the Beatles hair was too long, they looked like girls. The times have changed since they first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in the early 1960’s. By today’s standards their hair would be considered short and in some circles even considered a business cut if styled a little differently.

Each generation has its own cultural issues which are difficult for the preceding generation to accept. It has been this way since the beginning of time and will continue until Jesus return. It is human nature and a part of the growing up process for youth to explore new ideas and concepts different than their parents. Often times these youthful ideas push the buttons of us who forgot what it was like to be young and what it was like growing up. It is not to say all aspects of growing up and trying new things are right. Our children will make mistakes just as we made mistakes. However, the challenges of today’s youth are in many ways greater than they were for us. The development of technology has not helped. Neither have the changing cultural norms. Many believe and I am among them, that this generation with the advent of cell phones, chat rooms, Instagram, Twitter and more are influenced more by outside factors than factors at home. As parents or older adults we can try to win a battle we are guaranteed to loose by forcing our views and opinions on others or we can find a measure of success by trying to understand the culture and then in the understanding of that culture adapt or yes, even incarnate where possible.

One of the difficulties today for many is that today’s culture does not believe in absolute truth. Many of our absolutes are concepts that have been passed down through every vein of our lives. The truths many people have are difficult for the post modernist because they do not recognize nor have they discovered what they believe to be ultimate truth. This is why we must do our best to understand our children and raise them to the truth and understanding of God’s love as exemplified in his Son’s death, resurrection, teaching and Holy Word, the Bible. We have to in the process again, incarnate to create a better understanding between us and them. In other words, it is imperative that we live the words of Scripture and model our lives after Jesus if we are to be effective in sharing Jesus with others.

What does any of the above have to do with the story you are reading; "A Christmas Story"? Shortly after I came to have a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ I read the book, ‘In His Steps’ by Charles M. Sheldon. This book, as it has for many Christians, has left a dramatic impact on my life in the decisions I make. While hearing the story of a family that was robbed during Christmas in the early 1990’s on the radio program, Focus on the Family, I begin thinking about what Jesus would want me to do if I was robbed, especially at the worst time for a family with children, Christmas. As I thought about what God would want me to do the idea for "A Christmas Story" was birthed.

While the story looks at other areas such as racial understanding, the justice system and others it does not take place entirely at Christmas time. For those of us who have chosen to follow Jesus we understand the significance of Christmas. It is without a doubt one of the three most important days for the Christian. Christmas is a reminder of many things, including the example of Jesus that shows us why and how we should live all of the time. It is with this in mind that "A Christmas Story" was written. I cherish that Jesus was born as a babe in Bethlehem. He chose to live among us as one of us. I value the ultimate gift God gave humanity on that first Christmas. That gift gives me reason to live but it also inspires me to give to others. Jesus spent so much time with people and taught with such passion while he was on the earth, there is much we can still learn. He gave us a new commandment, the 11^th commandment that "We love God with all our heart, soul and mind and strength and that we love our neighbor as ourselves." We are told in Matthew that what we have done for the least of these we have done for Him. God makes it clear, we show Him our love by loving others.

I have looked for human role models who exemplify Gods’ love and by living Jesus’ teachings. In a former job I often interviewed people for employment and one of the last if not the last question I asked was that if they could have dinner with one person, either living or dead, real or fictional who would it be and why. Most had the predictable answers of Jesus, or a dead parent, maybe even a president like Abraham Lincoln. Those who know me are not surprised by my answer. It would not be Jesus, I am with Him everyday and have access to his teachings in the Bible, for me the answer to the question is the real Saint Nicholas. He was an individual who historically and in reality, understood what God had given him and what he should in return give back to others. It would be interesting to ask his thoughts on what he felt about the observance of Christmas in today’s society. "A Christmas Story" gives my take on what I believe God would have us do in part in today's society with Christmas.

Hopefully this story helps you consider what Christmas is about and what can come about if we understand and accept the significance of that first Christmas and every one since. I pray this story helps you understand not only culture but also how to reach out to others in a loving way. God has already given us the potential to have a Merry Christmas and a wonderful year. It is up to us in part to have one by recognizing the value of the gift but it is also our responsibility to help others see the meaning of Christmas too. May this Christmas, this life, be filled with the wonderful gift of Jesus and opportunity to fall so much in love with Him today that you can't help but share him with others.

Just For You

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